Republic Top 10 Headlines: Rajnath Singh meets Nepal Army Chief; US infra bill & more

Rajnath Singh Meets Nepal's Army Chief; Discusses Bilateral Defence & Security Cooperation

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday, 11 November, met with Nepal’s Chief of Army Staff General Prabhu Ram Sharma, a day after the latter was conferred the honorary rank of ‘General of the Indian Army’ by President Ram Nath Kovind. While taking to Twitter, the Office of Raksha Mantri informed about the meet and also stated that the two discussed matters related to bilateral defence and security cooperation.

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PM Modi To Launch RBI's Customer-Centric Initiatives, Schemes Aim To Empower Investors

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch two innovative customer-centric initiatives of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today, November 12. According to the Prime Minister's Office, the initiatives will be launched at 11 am on Friday by PM Modi through video conferencing. While one of the initiatives are aimed at enhancing access to the government securities market, the other will work as a portal for the customers to lodge their complaints.

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Bharat Biotech's Covaxin Shows 70.8% Efficacy Against All COVID Variants In Phase 3 Trials

Weeks after securing WHO’s Emergency Use Listing (ELU) for Covaxin, Bharat Biotech has now published data from Phase III trials of its coronavirus vaccine. In a press release, the Hyderabad based company said that following a safety and efficacy analysis of Covaxin, it was found that the jabs are 77.8% effective against symptomatic and 63.6% against asymptomatic cases of COVID-19.

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Rajasthan Cabinet Reshuffle: Sachin Pilot To Meet Sonia Gandhi; 3 Top Mins To Be Ousted

Amid the impending Rajasthan cabinet reshuffle, miffed ex-Dy CM Sachin Pilot is scheduled to meet Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Friday in Delhi. Sources report that Pilot will be seeking clarity about his 'future role' in the party. This meeting comes a day after CM Ashok Gehlot met with the party chief to discuss the cabinet reshuffle and appointments in the state. Recently, Pilot expressed dissatisfaction over his concerns not being addressed by the three-member committee in the last one year.

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Punjab Assembly Passes Resolution Against Farm Laws; Repeals SAD-era Contract Farming Act

The Punjab Assembly once again rejected the three farm laws passed by both Houses of Parliament by unanimously passing a resolution to this effect on Thursday. Moved by Punjab Agriculture Minister Randeep Singh Nabha, the resolution accused the Centre of enacting the aforesaid laws by unlawfully venturing into the domain of the states. Alleging that the Union government has disregarded the contention that agriculture is a state subject, it asserted that the regulated Mandis established under the APMC Acts have a legal foundation.

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BJP's Ram Kadam To File Complaint Against Salman Khurshid For Equating Hindutva With ISIS

Fuming over Congress leader Salman Khurshid's controversial words on Hindutva, BJP leader Ram Kadam will file a complaint against Khurshid on Friday. Claiming that crores of Hindus were hurt by his book on the Ayodhya dispute, Kadam said that he will file a complaint against Khurshid at Ghatkopar's Chirag Nagar Police at 11:30 AM. Khurshid has kicked up a controversy comparing Hindutva to radical jihadist groups like ISIS and Boko Haram in his new book 'Sunrise over Ayodhya'.

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US: Biden's Infrastructure Bill Provides $7,500 Tax Credit to Buyers Of Electric Vehicles

With their much-vaunted Infrastructure Bill, US President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats are looking to give American automakers and trade unionists the inside track on the electric vehicle market. According to a report by Associated Press, once implemented, the bill would provide a $7,500 tax credit to customers who buy electric vehicles through 2026. While the provision is being hailed by climate activists as it would cut down fossil fuel consumption in the country, Republicans and foreign traders have opposed the bill saying that manufacturers in their home states would be put at a competitive disadvantage.

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Taliban Arrest 600 IS Members In Past 3 Months; Claim 'threats Reduced To Great Extent'

Taliban Intelligence Department in Afghanistan has claimed that at least 600 ISIS terrorists were arrested in the past three months across the nation. It is to mention that the Taliban had gained control of Kabul in the month of August. Since then the Daesh or ISIS has waged a deadly spate of suicide attacks and targeted bombings across multiple provinces and claimed dozens of lives. 

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Five Coaches Of Kannur-Bengaluru Express Derail Near Salem; No Casualties Reported

In a major incident, five coaches of the Kannur - Bengaluru Express derailed in the wee hours of Friday between the Toppuru-Sivadi of Bengaluru Division. According to a statement released by the South Western Railway (SWR), the derailment was caused due to the sudden falling of boulders on the train. The train had departed from Kannur at 6:05 pm on Thursday.

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US CRS Report Exposes Pakistan, States 'it Has Played A Destabilising Role In Afghanistan'

A US Congressional Research Service (CRS) report has exposed Pakistan, saying that it has played an active, disruptive and destabilising role in affairs of Afghanistan. According to the report released by the bipartisan research wing of the US Congress, the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan is seen as a “substantive triumph” for Pakistan. The report noted that even though Pakistan has repeatedly claimed that its influence over the Taliban is limited, Islamabad has been bolstering its influence in the war-ravaged nation and advancing its decade-long efforts to limit Indian influence there. 

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